Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
USA, Oct 30.- Researchers have revealed that old viral remains, found in human DNA, awaken during pregnancy and after large blood loss to drive greater production of red blood cells, according to the Center Doctor at the University of Texas Southwestern.
The discovery was made through a study carried out on mice. The analysis showed that the stem cells responsible for blood formation showed the activation of fragments of genetic code, known as 'retrotransposons', during pregnancy. Later, the scientists took blood samples from pregnant and non-pregnant women and observed that the same situation was repeated in the mice.
Additional tests revealed that when this process did not manifest itself in the rodents, the animals developed anemia, a disease in which there is a shortage of red blood cells and to which women are more prone during pregnancy.
The study published in the journal Science represents a significant advance in defining the functionality of these genetic relics, commonly called 'junk DNA', because it was thought that they did not have much importance in the functions of the body.
"It's the opposite of what we expected"
However, researchers have also proven that there are risks within this process. When these genetic relics are activated, viral fragments can jump from one place to another in the genome and cause changes.
"It's the opposite of what we expected," said geneticist and immunologist Sean Morrison. "If there is a time to protect the integrity of the genome and avoid mutations, that time is during pregnancy," he added. (Text and Photo: Cubasí)
